Frankton, IN: Indian Creek, a remnant of the Panhandle

This is another case where a grain elevator had to buy a railroad remnant and a locomotive so that they could stay in business. In this case, the remnant is from the Panhandle and the new railroad they created is Indian Creek. You can see the track ends at the next road north. This gives them a long lead to hold a cut of empty hoppers that they can then shove past the loading chute to fill the hoppers.

Steve Berish posted three photos (below) with the comment:

A little over a week ago, I stopped by Frankton, IN to see if this unit still existed. ICRK 6002, an ex-SP Alco RS-11, is the sole power for the Indian Creek Railroad, a 4.55 mile shortline owned and operated by Rydman and Fox, the line's sole customer. 6002 works as needed to bring inbound loads of fertilizer and outbound loads of grain from the elevator in Frankton to the NS interchange north of Anderson. The early 80's F150 hi-rail truck was a nice bonus as well on this oddly warm February day.

James Hinman Do they shove all the way to Anderson?

Ron Buser No, they NS takes the train from northend of Anderson, at Dow and shoves the train to Florida Station were the Indian Creek pulls it north for loading. The loaded train is shoved back to Florida Station were the NS picks the cars up and pulls back to Dow, and then goes back north. Florida Station is about 2 miles north of Dow.

James Hinman Thanks. It's interesting that NS take it halfway up the branch.

Toledo Tom Could it still have the original Alco engine?

Steve Berish It does in fact still have the Alco 251

Toledo Tom Frankton isn't all that far away. A road trip may be in order!

I wonder how much this Alco smokes.

1

2

3

Satellite

Both ground pile containers are empty, so I checked what Bing captured. The north one is still full. It looks like they use a white plastic that is so strong and well sealed that they don't have to put tires on the pile.

Satellite

Chicago, IL: Jewelers' Building

(3D Satellite)

Fran Anderson Lyons posted
I took this in 1989 - 35 E Wacker, aka Jewelers' Bldg. Completed in 1927, at the time it was considered the tallest building outside of New York City. Previous names were Pure Oil Building and North American Life Insurance Building.
John Kierig: the Stratosphere Lounge (up in the dome) was reputed to be a Capone operation/hangout and is now the office of architect Helmut Jahn.
Bill Downes: Someone might post the details about how you and your automobile were taken by elevator to your jeweler on 22..or whichever.

Eric J. Norstrom posted

seldom seen original 8 x 10 photographic image of giaver and dinkelberg's jewelers building (1927) with the four corner roof tanks and 17-story tower under construction.

the 40-story cream-colored terra cotta building (renamed the pure oil building in 1928) was erected by the starrett-dilks company of chicago.

courtesy of bldg. 51 archive.

[The buildings that were along the river have been removed to make room for Wacker Drive.

And we see the west end of the C&NW State Street Yard on the right.]

Taylor Rosen posted three photos with the comment: "35 East Wacker, also known as the Jewelers' Building, is a 40-story 523 ft (159 m) historic building in the Loop community area of Chicago, Illinois, United States, located at the intersection of Wabash Avenue and East Wacker Drive, facing the Chicago River. It was built from 1925 to 1927, and was co-designed by Joachim Giæver and Frederick P. Dinkelberg. At the time of its completion in 1927, it was the tallest building in the world outside New York City."

Joe F. Guerra: This building had an elevator that could fit a car and Al Capone would go up to his penthouse alongside his car and chauffeur. In this building, I had a great sandwich at a street level restaurant that faces Wabash Avenue. Crisp lettuce, very delicious, just the way I like it...

Tom Bodeep: i worked there for a couple years.. The building has a car elevator that you enter from the basement. Jewelers could keep their jewels in the car until they reached their floor and unload the car into their suite (back in the day)

Patrick Carroll: Wrong. 52-story Terminal Tower in Cleveland at 709' (771' to the tip) was the second tallest building in the world when it was completed and the tallest building in North America outside NYC from 1927 to 1964.

1

2

3

I don't believe the customers use the car elevator, they were not carrying enough jewelry. It was the owners that used the elevator to take their inventory to their shop.

"Twenty-five percent of the entire structure, or 51,148 square feet on each of the first twenty-three floors, will be devoted to garage space, accommodating 625 cars." [Chicagology]

Ken Roubik posted
Jonathan Billig Used as Gotham City Hall in the Christian Bale Batman movies.
Laura Lewis Decepticon's headquarters (from the Transformers movie) or the Jewelers Building. It also has Feeding America's headquarters.
Chris Vanderhoof I believe there is a car elevator in the building that jewelers used to drive into so they wouldn't have to unload their jewelry on the street
Joseph Trankina Indeed there is/was!Lowell Beyer You used to be able to take an elevator all the way to the top. The story was Al Capone had an office there.
Christopher DjAbsolute Gomez The four towers on each corner used to have cast iron tanks in them connected with the building, fill with water, serving as an early form of a sprinkler system.
Sherry Drew I've still got my "return postage guaranteed" key ring from when I officed there.
Karin Pattydukeellington Pritikin Al Capone owned a speakeasy on the top floors. So the "most secure building" downtown was also a gathering place / watering hole for many of the city's most devious crooks n criminals.
Here is a para from a Crain's Chicago Business. article about the Building when the lease was acquired by Murphy Jahn. There are many references to the venue in the press of the time as well:
The cupola space originally was a restaurant and speakeasy called the Stratosphere Lounge, which is rumored to have been run by Al Capone. When the Jewelers Building was completed, it "was the tallest building outside of New York City," says Keith Palmer, vice-president of Murphy/Jahn. "This was in the stratosphere.Bruce Ross When it was finished in 1926, it was christened with that name--mainly because of the many "jewelers" that occupied that space. Pure Oil was one of the names that the Jewelers' Building used--circa 50s-early 70s period.

Kenneth Swedroe posted

On the same day I came across Ken's photo, I came across Kenneth's photo. The Jewelers' Building is in the middle of the photo just to the left of yet another box building.

Zachary Taylor Davis - Chicago Architect posted
The Jewelers Building (1925-1927 - Giaver & Dinkelberg, engineers and architects with Thielbar & Fugard as the supervising architects) features prominently in this photo from 1935.

MWRD posted
A view of the budding Chicago skyline, including the Jewelers Building (now 35 East Wacker) at right, is seen looking east from the Main Stem of the Chicago River towards a swing bridge at Clark Street on September 14, 1926.
Jeff Bransky Old Republic Building near middle of photo. Still standing but impossible to see from this point of view today.

Chicago, IL: U.S. Army Consolidating Station

Clarence Williams posted
Chicago Freight Depot

Brian Morris commented on the above posting

Boris Bleenchk commented on the above posting

Boris Bleenchk Pershing and Damen

Michael Fennessey I believe these are the Army Headquarters buildings where I attended apprenticeship classes in the early 1970's. The classrooms were in the former morgue, which had refrigerated rooms dating back to WWll days.

Clarence Williams The sign on the photo says, U.S. Army Consolidating Station. Here's the info I found on the photo. [Note it is a Jack Delano photo.]

I downloaded the .tiff version so that I could zoom in and read the sign at the top of the middle building. It reads "THE DIAMOND MATCH CO.".

Birds-Eye View

Montfort, WI: C&NW Coaling Tower

(Satellite, Birds-Eye View)

Den Adler posted
C&NW 4329 running light along the Ridgerunner route switching beneath the coal tower at Montfort Junction, Wisconsin. The tower is still there, in the middle of a corn field, visible from US Highway 18 west of Cobb. I was over there a few times during the week I was camping with my son's Boy Scout troop at nearby Governor Dodge State Park.

Charlie Danz posted, cropped to Facebook resolution
The old concrete coaling tower stands proud near the old ROW of the C&NW in Monfort,WI I'm surprised its still here
Charlie Danz The tracks have been gone since I believe the late 80s.
Charlie Danz From a guy I know who worked MoW on this line the speed limit was 10mph but they seldom got over 5mph and they had to stop often to rerail locomotive.
Charlie Danz Everything around it is farmland only bits and pieces of the grade remain.
Rob Hentschel Well someone owns the ROW. They aren't going to spend the money to tear that down. That's easily a $75k demolition.
Tom Wilson This a Fairbanks-Morse coaling Tower.
A William Nelson III steel reinforced concrete, those things are built. it would cost a mint to remove, and the risk of it coming down on it's own and hurting someone are next to nothing.

Jeff Wojciechowski posted three photos with the comment: "Former C&NW coaling tower - Montfort, WI 11/2/2018."

1

2

3

Perry Anderson commented on Jeff's posting
Jenny McCarthy I didn't realize there was a y there.Perry Anderson Jenny McCarthy Left to Fennimore, right to Madison, down to Cuba City.

Perry Anderson commented on Jeff's posting

Rock Island, IL: Rock Island Facilities and CB&Q Roundhouse

(Satellite)

David Sebben posted
An aerial view of the Rock Island, Illinois railyard, with the Rock Island depot on the right along with the freight house and REA warehouse. The Rock Island roundhouse is in the upper right and the CB&Q roundhouse in the upper center. This photo is from 1950.

1938 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Satellite

Update:

Marty Bernard posted
CB&Q 9266 at the Rock Island, IL roundhouse on September 18, 1964.
She was a SW7 built in July 1950 and became BN 132. In my photo she is showing her "Way of the Zephyrs" side.

The depot is still standing.

Street View

The baggage/express building set just east of the depot.

William Shapotkin posted

One of the challengers of buying or obtaining slides from others is that sometimes no information is given on the slide mount as to what/where/when the photograph was taken. This is one such slide:

As it turned out, this is not a C&NW or MILW station at all -- it is the ROCK frt house (located east of the station) in Rock Island, IL. I appreciate all the efforts a number of you made in identifying same...as stated, when you acquire slides from other sources and they are unmarked in any way, it is all-too-easy to forget (assuming you knew at the time it was acquired) what the subject is.

Slide bears an August 1991 processing date. Photographer Unknown/William Shapotkin Collection. (Shapotkin773)

David Sebben shared
A photo of the Rock Island roundhouse in Rock Island, IL, with the Burlington Route roundhouse in the background. (from a page I manage, Retro Quad-Cities)
Craig Sanders' photo
I ran across this photo tagged as the Rock Island roundhouse near the Rock Island depot and IH Farmall plant. I know that RQC posted a picture about two years ago, an aerial view of the area that showed both the Rock Island and Burlington round houses in that area. I don't know if the Rock Island Lines used this roundhouse to change engines at the depot rather than the Division point shops in Silvis. Maybe someone could help clarify this. Thanks.
Craig Sanders I wonder if that slanted roof under the trees in the background is that of the Burlington roundhouse. it seems to fit from what I've seen.Robert Duncalf This round house was for passenger engines and yard switch engines.

Retro Quad Cities commented
Here are the respect roundhouses for RI and Burlington.
[What are the odds he cropped the 1938 aerial photo exactly like I did? It looks like I have arrived on the web --- my work has been copied without credit.]

Kankakee, IL: Big Four Roundhouse and Railyard

(Satellite, you can still see the footprint of the roundhouse)

KB&S now owns the Big Four route between Kankakee and Lafayette, IN. They have retained just the two outside tracks of the railyard.

1939 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Update:

Rich Westerman shared  Kankakee County Museum's post
Richard FiedlerGroup Admin Great picture. Looks like the NYC- Big 4 Roundhouse behind the IC steamer.
James Johnson Because the Illinois Central crews usually got off at the Big Four station, engine were changed and the New York Central crew usually took over. The train appears to heading east. It is probably a New York Central diesel.

Steve Drassler posted

STOP---In the name of love (steam engines).

An Illinois Central steam locomotive sneaks in for a little servicing at the NYC/Big Four roundhouse in Kankakee, Illinois toward the end of the steam era. The roundhouse was located on north Greenwood Avenue between Birch and Cypress Streets, about seven blocks east of the IC main tracks. Photo c. 1956

Paul Jevert

I.C. 4-8-2 Mountain #2503

Justin Gillespie

A part of the roundhouse wall and 1 building still stand from the complex.

The foundation of the wall was left because it is a retaining wall for a parking lot.

Street View 

Eric Berg commented on Rich's share
NYC 6019 at Big 4 roundhouse on Feb 14, 1961

Eric Berg commented on Rich's share
NYC 1754-1756 at Kankakee's Big 4 roundhouse on December 8, 1959.

Stuart Pearson posted three photos with the comment: "Early 1950's at the Roundhouse in Kankakee, IL."

1 

2

3

Steve Drassler posted
NYC/Big Four roundhouse on North Greenwood Avenue in Kankakee, IL, late 50's, shortly before closing with the arrival of diesel power. I remember driving by there as a little kid with my folks, viewing that big, dirty smokey place with awe through the backseat car window.
Bill Edrington Did the Kankakee Belt use this roundhouse as well as the Big Four?
Steve Drassler Bill Edrington Yes. NYC (which was the "Kankakee Belt Line") engine crews got a few extra miles for going across town and back to/from the West Yards with the engines.
Larry Graham Indiana Division roundhouse?
Steve Drassler Dearborn
Karl Zumwalt was this the roundhouse at cypress st ?
Steve Drassler Cypress Street was right across the tracks from the roundhouse. The Big Four depot was on Cypress Street.

Darrell Burkhalter posted seven images with the comment: "Big 4 Roundhouse at Kankakee, Illinois where my Grandfather was Road Foreman of Engines."

1
Big 4 Roundhouse at Kankakee

2
Big 4 Roundhouse at Kankakee

3
Grandpa "Happy".

4
Big 4 Roundhouse at Kankakee today
Robert Aumann Holy cow, not even a few yard tracks remain! Sad.

5
1954 

6
IC transfer at Big 4 Roundhouse 1954

7
Servicing at the Big 4 Roundhouse in 1956.